Sunday, June 07, 2015

Mapping Historical Tornado Data

You can explore the data on the map by year and by location. Select a year from the map sidebar and you can view all of that year's recorded tornadoes on the map. The map sidebar shows details on the total number of tornadoes in the year and the number of resulting injuries & fatalities.

The map allows you to filter the data by location. The details in the map sidebar update automatically as you pan and zoom the map, to only show the data from the current map bounds. You can also select an individual tornado on the map to view its strength, length and the number of injuries & fatalities caused.

Tornado Tracks, 1950-2014 also allows you to view historical tornado data on an interactive map. This map visualizes each tornado's individual path.

You can filter the tornadoes shown on the map by scale, by year range and by the number of casualties caused. You can also select an individual tornado track on the map to view its strength, date, length & width and the number of injuries & fatalities.

CartoDB has visualized nine years of US tornado data from NOAA's National Weather Service. The map uses CartoDB's Torque library to animate the data by month and year.

The Last Nine Years of Tornadoes in the U.S. shows the ebb and flow of tornado frequency and distribution over the course of a year. The map seems to show a common pattern as each year tornado strikes move north-west across the country from the south-east and through Tornado Alley. The map also confirms that spring and summer are the most common times for tornadoes to strike.